Elder Powell: Happy Belated Mother’s Day

Hey y’all!

Happy Monday and halfway point of May! Time is flying. I would also like to extend a belated Happy Mother’s Day to the women and mothers. I was privileged to give a Mother’s Day talk yesterday in Sacrament Meeting and express the love and importance to the women and mothers in our lives. How grateful I am for my mother and the things she does for myself and family. It was a sweet moment to call home for the final time of my mission yesterday and knowing I will get to be with my family in a short 10 weeks. I admire and love the family relationship which involves us and our Loving Heavenly Father.

Life has been wild in the BIG D. It has been nice to see lots of fancy cars, homes, iPhones, businesses, malls, restaurants, and everything the BIG D has to offer. I have been stranded in the country for what seems like years (literally haha) and experience civilization once again!

On Wednesday, we had Zone Conference! For the first time on my mission, I was finally able to sleep until 6:30am since the church building was only 5 minutes away. All the other times, I had to wake up at 5:00am and drive two hours. So, it was quite a bit of a lovely change haha. All three of my Trainees were there and lots of my buddies who I haven’t seen in over a year were there as well. We talked about planning, companionship unity, and getting our Investigators to church! It was a top 3 Zone Conference of my Mission. Of course, since I’m a special child, lunch was Hawaiian Haystacks!! I get special treatment with food I can eat at Zone Conference. Haha. V

I was also blessed with the opportunity to give a couple Baptismal Interviews for two companionships in our District. We were fortunate to see one of three Investigators enter the waters of Baptism this past Saturday. We look forward to the other two in their conversion to also enter the waters of Baptism in the next couple of weeks.

Hang tight, grab a hot chocolate, sit back and relax for this week’s ❤️ #FridayNightDateNight!! ❤️

We got a “double date” this time! Wahoo! As we approached the beginning hours of the #FridayNightDateNight evening of 5:00pm, we were with the other Elders Companionship and we made a stop at Sonic to get ready for the big night. The facility was full of cars and we kept spying in most of the cars and guess who just happens to be in alllll those cars?? Adorable cute couples on their dates! We quickly ordered and since it was busy, it took awhile to receive our orders. In the meantime, all four of us got out and we grabbed a ton of Plan of Salvation Pamphlets and we all went to the cars and started teaching about the Plan of Salvation and Eternal Marriage & Family! It was awesome! One missionary per car and we were just teaching and explaining and more teaching and they all loved us! We got 9 New Investigators in 20 minutes! Not only was it a miracle, it was pure passion for Heavenly Father’s Plan for all of us! All 9 new investigators are between the ages of 18-30 either newly weds, or dating. It was perfect.

After Sonic, we dropped off the Elders at their apartment and made it to………..Starbucks at 7:00pm sharp!!! I just love Starbucks. I got my double chocolate chip frap and muffin for Technology Proselyting and #FridayNightDateNight! There were a total of 17 young couples on their dates in the store as we arrived and it was a full house at the cafe. I visited with this couple that got married in February the week after Valentine’s Day and I was freaking out! The guy is 24 years old and she is 21 years old and it was incredible. They are Methodist and always thought there was more to family than just this life. We had a really great conversation and became new investigators! They are excited and showed signs of relief and enjoyment knowing they could be sealed together as husband and wife for time and all eternity. On top of that, ANOTHER young couple on their way out of the store approached us and asked what we do and we explained and also dove into the Plan of Salvation hehehe and they became very interested in our message and said they are still looking for a church family! The husband is 26 and his wife is 25. They are adorable and also became new investigators. 4 new investigators at Starbucks and 9 at Sonic, makes 13 new investigators on ❤️ #FridayNightDateNight!!! ❤️ It was a wonderful evening!

To close, I want to leave with a paragraph from my talk I gave in church yesterday:

“The most important, life-changing information that I know of is the knowledge that we are children of God our Eternal Father. This is not only doctrinally correct, it is spiritually vital. The Savior said in His powerful prayer, “And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.” To know Heavenly Father and to understand our relationship to Him as our Father and our God is to find meaning in this life and hope in the life to come. Our families need to know He is real, that we are in fact His sons and His daughters and heirs to all that He has, now and forever. Secure in that knowledge, family members will be less likely to look for devilish diversions and more likely to look to God and live.” 

We are all children of our Loving Heavenly Father. We are one team. Let us be mindful of other’s needs and cares, let us be the best Disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ to our brothers and sisters. I am grateful I get to serve with all my heart, energy, and focus as a full-time missionary. We are blessed to understand the know the Restoration and Atonement of Jesus Christ. I know the Savior loves and cares for each one of us.